Abraham (peace be upon him) Appointed as Prophet

Abraham (peace be upon him) lived a pious life and was always engaged in doing of good. He walked on the path of righteousness but most of the people of his time were bent towards the world. The unity of god taught by Noah (peace be upon him) had vanished from the surface of the world and the people were groping in the darkness, engaging themselves in the worship of idols. God appointed Abraham (peace be upon him) a Prophet to stamp out the worship of idols from the society.

Abraham, right from childhood had abhorred idols and now he was commissioned to uproot the worship of idols from the society. He wasted no time and embarked on the task in full earnest. He went to his father-in-law and said, “Do you take idols for god? Surely I see you and your people in manifest error.” (6:75)

He spoke in public and private about the futility of idol worship. His method of argumentation was mostly sarcastic.

During his evening meetings, Abraham (peace be upon him) used to invite those who worshipped the sun and the moon and other heavenly bodies as their gods to his house.

During one of these discussions, one evening, on seeing a star he observed, “O this is my Lord.” But when it set, he said, “I don’t like those who set.” Then he saw the moon rise with spreading light, he said, “Can this be my Lord?” But when it set, he said, “If my Lord guide me not, I shall surely be of the people who go astray.” And when he saw the sun rise with spreading light, he said, “Can this be my Lord? This is the greatest.” But when it also set, he said, ‘O my people! Surely I am quit of that which you associate with God.” Thus he exposed the false beliefs of his people. He spoke ironically to taunt them of their folly.

Discussion with the King

Abraham (peace be upon him) was a great iconoclast. His people worshipped the sun and the stars, their chief god being Merodach (Madruk), originally the god of the morning and the spring sun (Enc. Bib. & Enc. Rel. Eth, ii p. 296). They believed that all life depended on the sun. Abraham (peace be upon him) very wisely asked the infidel King that if he, as he claimed, controlled life and death, then let him reverse the course of the sun on which all life depended. The King was in a fix. He could not say that he could not accept Abraham’s challenge to bring the sun from the west to the east, for that would have demolished his claim of being the controller of life and death. At the same time if he had said that he could do so, it meant that he claimed to exercise control over the sun which would have been a great blasphemy in the eyes of his people who worshipped the sun. Thus he was completely confounded and did not know what to say. He was defeated squarely.

Debate with People

Under the guidance of God, Abraham (peace be upon him) continued his mission diligently. One of his great debates is recorded in the Holy Quran as follows:

“When he said to his father and his people, ‘What are these images to which you are so devoted?’

They replied, ‘We found our fathers worshipping them.’

He said, ‘Then, you, as well as your fathers, have indeed been in manifest error.’

They said, ‘Is it really the truth that thou hast brought us, or art thou jesting?’

He replied, ‘Nay, your Lord is the Lord of heavens and the earth Who created them; and I am of those who bear witness to this; and, by Allah, I will certainly plan against your idols after you have gone away and turned your backs.’

So he broke them into pieces, all accept the chief of them, that they may return to it.

They said, ‘Who has done this to our gods? Surely, he is a wrongdoer.’

Some others said, ‘We heard a young man speak ill of them; he is called Abraham.’

They said, ‘Then bring him before the eyes of the people, that they may bear witness against him.’

Then they said to Abraham, ‘Is it thou who hast done this to our gods, O Abraham?’

He replied, ‘Well, someone has surely done this. Here is the chief of them. So ask them if they can speak.’

Then they turned towards one another and said, ‘You yourselves are surely in the wrong.’

And they were made to hang down their heads for shame and said to Abraham, ‘Certainly thou knowest well that these do not speak.’

He said, ‘Do you then worship, instead of Allah, that which cannot profit you at all, nor harm you? Fie on you and on that which you worship instead of Allah! Can you not understand?’ ” (21:53-68)

It should be remembered that Abraham (peace be upon him) always spoke to idol worshipper with irony and sarcasm. In this debate he “seems to have rebuked his people and to have brought home to them the futility of their idolatrous practices, first by breaking the idols and then by challenging their votaries to ask those idols, if they could speak, to tell them who had broken them.”

Abraham (peace be upon him) Thrown in the Fire

This infuriated his opponents. The chiefs, instead of accepting the truth, were enraged and said, “Burn him and help your gods if at all you mean to do something.” But Allah commanded, “O fire, be thou a means of coolness and safety for Abraham!” The Quran says, “And they had intended an evil plan against him, but we made them the worst losers. ” (21:68-71)